Tropical Storm Philippe formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Saturday but so far was on a track that does not pose any threat to land, US weather forecasters said.

At 0300 GMT, Philippe -- packing maximum sustained winds of 40 miles per hour (65 kilometers) -- was located about 370 miles (595 kilometers) southwest of the southernmost Cape Verde islands, the US National Hurricane Center said.

"Some strengthening is forecast during the next 48 hours, and Philippe could become a hurricane by late Monday," the Miami-based center said.

It added that Philippe posed "no threat to land" and said no warnings were in effect.

The projected storm track offered by forecasters showed the storm remaining in the Atlantic far from land before petering out.

Philippe is the 16th named storm of the 2011 Atlantic season, which has seen three hurricanes so far, including Irene, a massive system that unleashed deadly floods and storm surges in the eastern United States.

Also in the Atlantic, Tropical Storm Ophelia was located about 310 miles east of the Northern Leeward Islands, and was "struggling to survive as a tropical cyclone," the NHC said.

"Ophelia could degenerate into a trough of low pressure at any time if it no longer has a well-defined center," it said, forecasting that the storm would move to the northwest, passing Puerto Rico at a distance, perhaps on Monday.

Hurricane Hilary spins away from Mexican coastMiami (AFP) Sept 24, 2011 -
Hurricane Hilary spun into the open Pacific Ocean on Saturday and continued its march away from the Mexican coastline, the US-based National Hurricane Center said.

Packing winds of 140 miles (220 kilometers) per hour, Hilary was a Category Four storm on the five-level Saffir-Simpson scale.

At 1500 GMT Hilary was centered 210 miles (335 kilometers) south-east of Manzanillo, Mexico, and moving towards the west at a speed of 12 miles per hour.

Hilary is expected to turn towards northwest and lose speed, but it is also "expected to remain a major hurricane during the next to days," the NHC warned.

Large swells generated by Hilary "are likely causing life-threatening surf and rip current conditions" are affecting parts of the Mexican coast, it said.

Despite its wind speed, Hilary remains a small storm: hurricane-force winds extend outward just 30 miles (50 kilometers) from the center, and tropical storm force winds extend outward up to 85 miles.

Pacific Hurricane Hilary swells to Category FourMiami (AFP) Sept 23, 2011
Hurricane Hilary swelled to a Category Four storm on Friday but was moving away from Mexico's Pacific coast and was not expected to strike land, according to the US-based National Hurricane Center.
Packing winds of 145 miles (230 kilometers) per hour, the storm was 125 miles (200 kilometers) southwest of the resort town of Zihuantenejo, the NHC said.
Hilary was moving into the open Pacif ... read more

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